1: The Underground

761 41 36
                                    

Your grip tightened on the mouse as you searched across the screen at the open world.

Your cheek stung from where your head Camera Guard had slapped you. Ever speaking out was a big mistake down here in the Underground. Rule number one in a place like this: keep your damn mouth shut.

You chewed at the inside of your cheek, your eyes searching over the three screens they gave you. One simple job for twelve hours a day; you keep your eyes peeled for any suspicious activity, and if there is any, report it immediately.

That had only happened to you a few times. It was forever ago. Down in the Underground, there was no sense of days or how many had passed by. Those occurrences back then were when you first started and were brought away from your family. That was the last time you saw sunlight. Sure, they gave you vitamin D drops and rays down in the Underground, but there was no true light to take in.

You leaned back in your chair. You tried not to think of your family. It probably had been years since you last saw them. Whatever government you still had nowadays took you away from them. Something about your intelligence. Something saying that you weren't like others. Why would they let you waste your time down in the Underground, though?

If they talked about your intelligence, why would they bring you down to the camera room of the Underground? All you were doing was surveying the area of the closed off city. The city that was dumb and obviously hated its citizens. When you lived with your family, you understand how dumb your government was with its propaganda and over dressed leaders. Dumb, dumb, and dumber.

For the past years you have surveyed your city, you've done things to keep yourself busy. You've hacked into the propaganda filled websites that your government allowed. You've wasted your time on news articles. You've done anything to keep yourself sane. Sure, the Camera Guards caught you before, but being beat was normal now. There was no fear that came with it.

You looked up at the ceiling above you that shone down those artificial sunlight beams that seemed to keep all of you sane down in the Underground. They were bright, but you didn't care as you looked up. You just wanted something else to watch except those damn cameras that made you seem to go crazy.

You couldn't wait until your shift was over. They never had a clock anywhere, not even on the cameras. You couldn't wait to get out of the camera room to work out, eat, then go to bed. That was your normal schedule. It never changed. There was nothing to change in the Underground. There was nothing no one could do to make it special. 

Being in the Underground sucked. You weren't allowed to have any friends. You weren't allowed to talk with one another. It was always just silence with the tapping of things, pipes running, people walking through the halls, sometimes bangs on doors when people started to go crazy. You shuddered. When people start to go crazy.

The person who used to work next to you never showed up to work. You had heard him scream down the hall from you, banging on his metal door in the middle of the night. That's all you heard that night. He had broke. He was no use anymore. That morning, you knew they killed him off without a second thought.

No use for a body with a broken mind. When would yours break, too? Days? Years? You felt determined to keep yourself alive. Your mother had always told you not to let things get to your head. She told you to keep a clear mind. For the past few years, you had. You had kept your mind blank, keeping your mouth shut most of the time. It was better that way.

Surprising you, you suddenly heard the door to the camera room open. Time to leave already. You didn't dare turn your head around unless if you were told to get up and leave. Instead, you kept staring at your screen, watching one camera where a pack of kids ran around, having fun.

"This is where you'll work," you heard your boss, one of the Camera Guards, say. He sounded irritated like always. He must of had a new recruit with him, probably young and still full of life. You couldn't imagine what it was like to still come in here, thinking that they want you to do something important. It was dumb, but you didn't care. The kid would learn sooner of later.

"You'll be sitting next to her." Your boss's voice was growing nearer. You decided to keep your eyes glued to the screen, not daring to make eye contact. It was better that way. It was better for everyone. "I'll let the girl show you how to work the cameras. I got shit to do."

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the Camera Guard shove the person down into the seat next to you where your former coworker had worked. You didn't dare look over, but the Camera Guard grabbed your shoulder, spinning your chair around to meet the person and him. You stiffened under his grip, which you could imagine him smirking because of it.

You were faced with the new recruit. You had imagined the kid to be pretty young, but this guy was your age. He had light brown hair with dark brown eyes that were cold and secreted. He wore the same clothes as everyone else in the room that had the day shift with you: a black T-shirt, gray camouflage pants, and black combat boots. He had a huge cut on his cheek, obvious invisible stitches holding it closed. He was a handsome guy, but looked cold and hard on the outside.

Your boss's grip tightened on your shoulder. You held your guard. You didn't dare look up at him. You were going to stand strong, that slap mark still on your face from only hours ago. "Girl, this is the new recruit. Show him the cameras. I hope you two get along fine, but remember, no making friends."

You knew that rule. This guy didn't. The Camera Guard released your shoulder, your shoulder slightly throbbing from the pressure now gone. The Camera Guard's feet shuffled away, out of the room. The heavy metal door to the camera room closed behind him, leaving a huge bang ripping through the air. You just stared at the guy for a moment.

With a sigh, you rolled over to the guy's side, scooting in close to the desk. Your hand grabbed the mouse so you could point to things on the screen to show him what everything was. You could feel his presence next to your body, which made you a bit uncomfortable. All guys' presence made you feel that way with how much abuse came from the Camera Guards.

"These are the cameras," you said quietly, pointing to the four cameras he got. It was weird to hear your own voice for once. His screen was just like yours, but a different scenery. It was good to see something different for once. "You watch them until the shift ends. When it does, you're free to go get food, have an hour of free time, then off to bed for the next shift."

"I'm Namjoon," he said quietly, his hand suddenly landing on your shoulder. You stiffened up, still staring at his screen. You could feel his eyes on you the whole time, watching each movement. You couldn't help but stay frozen there, afraid to move. "What's your name?"

"We're not supposed to make friends," you said, pulling away from the screen. His hand fell away from your shoulder, looking over at you. He didn't smile at you. All he did was keep a blank face, obviously trying to keep your encounter bitter and cold. You couldn't help but stare at his cut up cheek. Where would he had gotten that from?

"The Camera Guard only called you 'girl.' Tell me what your real name is," Namjoon said, raising his eyebrows at you. "Then I'll get off your case."

You . . . 
A) Tell him your name.
B) Ignore him completely.

Start: 05.02.18
End: 12.02.18

Choose wisely . . . ~

Control Room - BTS [ON-HOLD] (Choose Your Own Adventure AU)Where stories live. Discover now